Mercury arc rectifier



I July 7, 1936. F. P. WHITAKER 2,046,983

MERCURY, ARC RECTIFIER Filed May 2 1955 Inventor: Frank RWHfaker b 77 Hi Attorneg.

Patented July 7, 1936 UNITED. STATES MERCURY ARC RECTIFIER Frank P. Whitaker, Rugby, England, assignor to General Electric Company, a corporation of New York Application May 2, 1935, Serial No. 19,496 In Great Britain May 10, 1934 3 Claims.

My invention relates to mercury arc rectifiers and more particularly to the construction of the anode leads for such rectifiers whereby eflicient cooling of the anode structure is insured.

In certain types of rectifiers the anode is fixed to a stem which is hollow and which may be cooled by various means. A common method in use is to fill the hollow stem with water, the water circulating between the cooler fitted at the open end of the stem and the surface of the bottom of the stem, the temperature of which is high due to its close proximity to the anode. With this construction the cooling is unsatisfactory under all conditions of loading.

As described in my British Patent No. 394,361, it has been proposed to divide this cooling system into two separate systems of circulation. The present invention is a modification of the two systoms of circulation described in the above-mentioned British patent, and provides two circulating systems divided by a diaphragm which completely separates the liquids in the two systems but which conducts the heat from the one system to the other. The height of the cooling medium in the lower or hollow system is preferably adjusted so that the heat is not appreciably conducted from the lower circulating system to the upper circulating system until the liquid medium in the lower circulating system begins to vaporize. This diaphragm is so designed that the cooling surface between the two circulating systems is sufficient to prevent any undue pressure existing in the lower or hotter circulating system.

In practice, the diaphragm may have a tubular control extension, which projects upwards into the cooler of the twocirculating systems so that it is surrounded by the liquid in the upper system and heat is transferred through the walls of the extension. If desired, a nonreturn valve may be fitted in the upper extremity of the diaphragm extension, but it is preferable to so design it that the walls will have a suilicient area to condense all the steam generated in the lower circulating system during normal working.

My invention will be better understood from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawing and its scope will be pointed out in the appended claims.

The single figure of the drawing is a side elevational view of a portion of a mercury arc rectifier or like vapor electric device in which my present invention has been embodied.

In the drawing, I represents the anode of a mercury arc device such as a rectifier only a portion of which is shown in the figure. The anode is mounted on a tubular stem 2, which is insulated from a metal wall portion 3 of the rectifier by any suitable mounting and insulating means 4, the stem 2 containing a cooling liquid 5. The stem 2 is connected by a flange connector to a reservoir 6 also containing a cooling liquid 1. Between the two bodies of cooling liquid is a diaphragm 8 which may be secured between the flanges 9 connecting the stem to the upper reservoir. The diaphragm prevents the liquids of the two cooling 10 systems from mixing and is preferably shaped with a tubular portion ill extending into reservoir 6 so that any of the liquid 5 which becomes vaporized owing to the heat of the anode is condensed by the cooling liquid in the reservoir. A non- 15 return valve Il may be fitted in the upper end of the tubular portion IU of the diaphragm 8 if desired so that should the pressure of the vaporized liquid in the anode stem become too great the vapor can escape but the cooling medium in 20 the reservoir ii cannot mix with that in the stem.

My invention has been described herein in particular embodiments for purposes of illustration.

It is to be understood, however, that the invention is susceptible of various changes and modifica- 25 tions and that by the appended claims I intend to cover any such modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of my invention.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by. Letters Patent of the United States is: 30 1. In a mercury arc rectifier or the like, an

anode, a hollow stern connected to said anode and partially filled with a cooling liquid, a reservoir containing a body of cooling liquid and connected to the upper end of said stem, and a diaphragm 35 separating said two liquids, said diaphragm being provided with a hollow extension projecting into the reservoir a substantial distance but to a point below the surface of said body of liquid so that any liquid vaporized in the stem will be condensed by 40 the cooling liquid in the reservoir in contact with the extension.

2. In a mercury arc rectifier or the like, an anode, a hollow stem connected to said anode and partially filled with a cooling liquid, a reser- 45 voir containing a body of cooling liquid and connected to the upper end of said stem, a diaphragm separating said two liquids, said diaphragm being provided with a hollow extension projecting into the reservoir a substantial distance sothat any liquid vaporized in the stem will be condensed by the cooling liquid in the reservoir in contact with the extension, and a valve in the upper portion of said extension and below the surface of said body of cooling liquid to permit the condensing the reservoir a substantial distance but to a point below the surface of said body of liquid so that any liquid vaporized in the stem will be condensed by the cooling liquid in the reservoir in contact with the extension, the height of the liquid in said stem being so adjusted that heat is conducted appreciably from said liquid in the stem to said liquid in the reservoir only when said liquid in the stem begins to vaporize.

FRANK P. WHITAKER. 

